1930s photo album reveals couple’s road
A CHANCE find of vintage holiday snaps show how a wealthy couple travelled across Africa in their caravan to escape the gloom of the Great Depression.
The photographs were taken by a Mr and Mrs Fuller during their epic road trip to Africa in 1934.
Accompanied by a maid, they travelled 2,300 miles from Dover to the Sahara in their beloved Chevrolet Eccles motor caravan.
Photo albums of their trip were found in a cardboard box during a house clearance in Nottingham.
More than 100 photos and a postcard album packed with vintage cards were expected to fetch £40-£60 at an auction in London yesterday.
Auctioneer Charles Hanson said: “Back in the 1930s, motor caravan holidays were a relatively new thing. In fact, the Eccles Caravans had only just started being built in Birmingham.
“At that time, they were the preserve of the well-off, perhaps titled people, who would have their motor homes custom-built to order.
“Mr and Mrs Fuller were clearly a wealthy and adventurous couple. They set off on a trip keen caravanners today might be hesitant to undertake.
“But they returned home safe and sound, though at one point their vehicle is shown stuck in desert sand.” Mr Hanson added: “Today people think nothing of travelling the world or taking a gap year.
“But back in the era of the Great Depression most British families were more likely to stay in the UK, perhaps visiting a seaside resort like Blackpool.”
Pictures show the Fullers at the port of Dover, on board a ship and heading through France.
At Bordeaux, their caravan was blessed by a priest before the couple pressed on to Algiers, the Sahara and African settlements.
They are seen sitting by a cooking fire outside a traditional hut and pitching a tent for their maid while they enjoyed the caravan.
The seller, who does not want to be named, said: “We have no